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Pearson closer to fulfilling Olympic dream

It has been more than 40 years since Bermuda was represented in rowing at the Olympics, Shelley Pearson wants to change all that.

The Oxford University student has dreamed of competing on the world stage ever since she took up the sport at school, and has been working towards her goal ever since.

However, for a time it seemed as if the 24-year-old’s dream might remain just that.

A fractured pelvis, torn tendon and nine surgeries over the course of just two years to combat an aneurysmal bone cyst, meant she had to temper her expectations. Not an easy task for someone for whom life without the sport is almost unimaginable.

“I can remember the moment I fell in love with the sport,” Pearson said. “I felt all the athletes in the boat rowing in perfect harmony. It was as if we were gliding weightlessly on top of the water. The moment you’ve experienced that feeling, it’s what you constantly strive toward.”